Green restoring device having a golf ball marker

ABSTRACT

A green restoring device in the form of a tool by means of which damages, in particular impressions in a golf green, caused by the impact of a golf ball, can be repaired, and comprising a carrier ( 1 ) in which a green restoring tool ( 2 ) is arranged to be maintained in fully retracted and fully expelled position, respectively, and in which the carrier is made of a non-magnetic material and the carrier ( 1 ), at the front end thereof, if formed with means ( 11, 12; 12   a;    12   b ) for cleaning the tool ( 2 ) while the tool is being retracted into the carrier ( 1 ). The carrier ( 1 ) of the green restoring device is a) at the front end thereof and at the underside thereof formed with a recess ( 6 ) having a magnet ( 7 ) for holding a marker button easily releasable, and b) at the rear end thereof formed with a built in magnet ( 9 ) for holding the tool ( 2 ) under magnetic action in its fully retracted position, and a slot ( 10 ), in which a fixing clip ( 4 ) is adapted to be secured.

The present invention generally relates to a so called green restoringdevice, meaning a tool by means of which damages, in particularimpressions in a golf green, caused by impacts of a golf ball can berepaired. Any unevenness in a grass surface may change the movingdirection of the golf ball, and it is therefore important that suchimpact impressions are eliminated.

In golf playing there is used a green restoring device for repairing theimpact impression that the ball makes in the green. The green restoringdevice also includes golf ball marker, or a marking button for markingthe position of the golf ball on the play ground when said ball is to belifted up. The marker button in placed adjacent the boll before the ballis allowed to be lifted. The marker button marks the exact position ofthe ball on the ground and indicates where the ball is to be replaced.

The green restoring device consists of a tool which is enclosed in acarrier and which, when used, is expelled a certain distance out of saidcarrier. A green repairing tool of the said type is known for instancefrom the U.S. Pat. No. 6,413,174. In said patent the carrier comprisestwo plates having opposed cavities which provide a hollow space into andout of which the tool can be introduced and expelled resp. Thedisplacements are made into several fixed positions which are marked bymeans of a spring pin which engages corresponding recesses in the lowerone of the two co-operating plates. For protecting the upper side andthe lower side said known green repair tool is formed with upper andlower sides. The lower side is additionally formed with a carrier for amarker.

The known apparatus involves a couple of disadvantages. When retractingthe tool into the carrier, after the tool has been used, some sand,gravel and other dirt or impurities irrevocably follow the tool into thecarrier, and this may make it difficult or impossible to once againexpel the tool. At the same time some impurities also fall down into thepocket in which the green repair tool is kept during the golf tour.Further, the indications for the positions of the tool in the carrier,comprising the spring button and the relatively shallow recessestherefore in the bottom plate of the carrier provide a markedly weaklocking of the tool, and due thereto the tool may unintentionally beintroduced into the carrier when subjected to the relatively strongpressure which is necessary for having the tool become pressed down intothe ground. Further, said known green repair tool consists of manydifferent parts, and it is complicated and expensive to manufacture.

Further, the known green repair tool has blund outer edges, and it istherefore difficult to have said tool penetrate hard green soil.Depending on the blunt outer edges of said tool it also can not be usedfor cleaning the scores or grooves in the club head.

An important function of the apparatus is that the tool is safely lockedin its expelled position in the carrier during the green restoringoperation. The tool, which is formed as a metal plate having a recessextending in the longitudinal direction and which is converging in thedirection inwards, can be pressed down into the ground for bringing up agrass divot which is thereafter placed in the impression in the greencaused by the impact of the golf ball. The pressure of the tool oftencan be very strong when said tool is pressed down in the ground, and itis thereby important that the tool is not unintentionally pressed back,more or less, into the carrier. The green restoring device according tothe present invention therefore is formed with a safe, but easilyreleasable, locking of the tool in its expelled position.

It is also important that it is prevented that sand, gravel and otherdirt is introduced into the carrier when the tool is retracted after animpact impression has been restored. Therefore the carrier is, accordingto the invention, at the front edge thereof formed with a cleaning meanswhich sweeps or brushes off existing dirt and the bottom side of thetool, and eventually also the upper side thereof. This also preventsdirt from falling down into the pocked in which the green restoringdevice is normally kept.

The green restoring device according to the invention is of a simpleconstruction and comprises a carrier made as an integral piece, forinstance made by extrusion of aluminium, plastic or any other suitablematerial, which carrier has a through elongated slot for the tool, arecess at the underside thereof, adjacent the front end, in which amarker button can be kept locked by means of a magnet or in another way,a smaller cavity and the rear side of the carrier for housing of amagnet intended to keep the tool maintained in its fully retractedposition, a further cavity at the rear side of the carrier for fixedlymounting of a holder clip, by means of which the green restoring devicecan be hanged at the edge of a trouser pocket, at the edge of anotherpocket or at any other place.

An important feature of the green restoring device according to theinvention is that it is formed with a cleaning means at, or adjacent thefront edge thereof, which cleans the bottom side of the tool and/or theupper side thereof while retracting said tool after it has been used forrestoring the green, and which also prevents sand, gravel or any otherdirt from becoming retracted into the carrier when the tool is retractedinto the carrier, and which also minimizes the intake of gravel into thepocked in which the green restoring device is kept.

Thanks to the existence of the cleaning means and the protectingproperties of the carrier it is possible make the ends of the tool morepointed and narrower than has been usual, and this makes it easier topress down the tool into the ground at the place where the impactimpression is to be restored. Thereby the tool also leaves less openingsin the ground after it has been used. The pointed ends of the tool alsoare useful for clearing the grooves of the golf club head. The greenrestoring device is normally kept un-protected in the pocket of thetrousers, and it is thereby important that the pointed and sharp tooldoes not damage the fabric of the pocket of the hand which is to handlethe green restoring device.

The invention now is to be described more closely with reference to theaccompanying drawings. In the drawings

FIG. 1 shows a green restoring device as seen in a perspective viewobliquely from above and with the tool in its retracted position.

FIG. 2 shows the green restoring device in the same way as in FIG. 1 butwith the tool in its expelled position.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the tool of the green restoring device, and

FIG. 4 is a cross section view through the tool, as seen along lineIV-IV of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a vertical cross section through the carrier,

FIG. 6 is a side view of the tool,

FIG. 7 shows a side view of a marker button, and

FIG. 8 shows a side view of a holder clip.

FIG. 9 is a view from behind of the green restoring device as seen inthe direction of the arrow XI of FIG. 5. The opening of FIG. 9 iscovered by a protection material having a possibility of opening thecavity for the holder clip.

FIG. 10 is a vertical cross section view through a complete greenrestoring device shown with the tool retracted into the carrier, and

FIG. 11 correspondingly shows the green restoring device with the toolin its expelled position.

FIG. 12 shows an alternative embodiment of a green restoring deviceaccording to the invention seen in a perspective view obliquely fromabove.

FIG. 13 shows a longitudinal cross section through the green restoringdevice according to FIG. 12, as seen along line XII-XII, with the toolin its retracted position, and

FIG. 14 shows the same cross section view as in FIG. 13 but with thetool in its expelled position.

The green restoring device shown in FIGS. 1-11 generally comprises acarrier 1, a tool 2, a marker button 3 and may optionally be formed witha fixing clip 4.

The carrier 1 can be made by extrusion in an integral piece of materialof a type on non-magnetic material, like aluminium or a plasticmaterial. The carrier is formed an inner longitudinal slot 5 for thetool 2, a preferably circular recess 6 adjacent the front edge of thecarrier, which recess is, at the bottom thereof, formed with arectangular magnet 7 for easily releasable holding a marker button 3fixed thereto. At the rear end the carrier is formed with a slot 8 formounting of a magnet 9 intended to keep the tool 2 secured whenintroduced in the carrier 1. At the rear edge there may also be a slot10 for optionally introducing and locking of a fixing clip 4, by meansof which the green restoring device can be hanged in the edge of apocket, in a belt of similar. At the front edge the carrier is alsoformed with a recess 11, in which a brush 12 for cleaning the tool 2 canbe mounted. Adjacent to each side edge at the upper side the carrier isformed with a rib 13 for guiding the tool 2. The brushes are preferablymounted in a plastic carrier which is secured in the recess(es) 11 bymeans of spikes or similar projecting means which engage the sides ofsaid recess(es).

The tool is made as a plate of magnetic material, which comprises aguiding base part 14 having parallel side edges which are guided betweenthe ribs 13, and a fork like end part 15, the allow shaped branches 16of which extend at an angle out from each other thereby forming aconverging slot 17. The branches 16, which are preferably formed withdotted edges, are suited for being pressed obliquely down into theground and for digging up a sand/grass divot adapted to be placed in animpact impression caused by the impact of a golf ball. The base 14 ofthe tool has a spring clamp 18 at the upper side thereof, which clamp isriveted or welded to said base, and which with a front end thereofprovides an bent up spring 19 having a hook 20 intended to snap up andlock the tool 2 against the front edge in its expelled position.Alternatively the clip 18 is formed so that it can slide in thetransversal direction so that the releasing button 21 can not becomelocked in the guide slot 22 or can be braked in said slot 22. The outerend hook 20 of the spring clamp preferably is formed as C to the effectthat said hook can be locked against the locking rib 23, thereby keepingthe tool in expelled position also when the tool 2 1 used in solid andhard soil.

For releasing of the spring 19, 20 that hat snapped up it is formed witha releasing button 21 which upon depression releases the hook 20 so thatthe tool can be introduced in the carrier. At the upper side the carrieris, to that end, formed with a longitudinal slot 22 in which thereleasing button 21 can slide between a fully retracted and a fullyexpelled position.

The marker button 3 is preferably of a magnetic material and has aslightly less area than that of the recess 6. The magnet 7 for thebutton has less diameter than that of the recess, it projects slightlyabove the bottom of the recess, so that the button 3 can be released bypressing same at a place of the edge thereof, as indicated in FIG. 11.

The tool is kept in place by magnetic action in its fully retractedposition in that the magnet 9 at the rear end of the carrier 1 actuatesthe guiding base 14 or the spring clamp 18, which is made of somemagnetic material.

As most clearly shown in FIG. 5 the carrier is, at the front endthereof, formed with a recess 11 in which a cleaning means 12, forinstance a brush, a pad or another means is mounted for scratching offsand, gravel or any other dirt from the tool 2 when said tool isretracted into the carrier. As indicated in FIGS. 12-14 the device canbe formed with two separate cleaning means, one means 12 a actingagainst the bottom side of the tool, the second means 12 b actingagainst the top side of the tool. In this latter case it may be suitableto provide a locking rib 23 slightly inside of the end of the carrier,against which rib 23 the spring hook engages lockingly in the expelledposition, see FIG. 14.

For making it possible to hook connect the green restoring device tosome article of clothing it is formed with an fixing clip 4 which can beintroduced into the slot 10.

When using the device the tool 2 is expelled out of the carrier byactuating the button 21 until the hook 20 engages the front edge of thecarrier or the locking rib 23, so that the tool is maintained safely inits expelled position. The tool is thereafter pressed down into theground aside of an impression caused by an impact of a golf ball, and asuitably large divot of grass or soil is bent up and is placed in theimpact impression and is pressed down so that the ground becomes evenagain. After the restoring of the impact impression the releasing button21 is pressed down, so that the spring hook 20 gets free from the frontedge of the carrier, or from the locking rib 23, whereupon the tool isretracted into the carrier, where it is kept in place by co-operationwith the magnet 9 and the magnetic material of the tool and/or thespring clamp 18 thereof.

REFERENCE NUMERALS

-   1 carrier-   2 tool-   3 marker button-   4 fixing clip-   5 slot for tool-   6 recess (for marker button)-   7 magnet-   8 slot-   9 magnet-   10 slot for clip-   11 recess for brush-   12 brush (a, b)-   13 rib-   14 guiding base-   15 fork like end-   16 branches-   17 slot-   18 spring clamp-   19 spring-   20 spring hook-   21 releasing button-   22 slot (longitudinal)-   23 locking rib

1. A green restoring device in the form of a tool by means of whichdamages, in particular impressions in a golf green, caused by the impactof a golf ball, can be repaired, and comprising a carrier (1) in which agreen restoring tool (2) is arranged to be maintained in fully retractedand fully expelled position, respectively, characterized in that thecarrier of the green restoring device, at the front end thereof, ifformed with means (11, 12; 12 a; 12 b) for cleaning the tool (2) whilethe tool is retracted into the carrier (1).
 2. A green restoring deviceaccording to claim 1, characterized in that the carrier (1) is formed asan integral piece of material, for instance by be being extruded or bybeing casted.
 3. A green restoring device according to claim 1 or 2,characterized in that the carrier (1) if formed with an elongated slot(5), in which the tool (2) can be displaced between a full retracted anda fully expelled position.
 4. A green restoring device according toclaim 1, characterized in that the means for cleaning the tool (2)comprises a cross extending brush (12) which is mounted with the basethereof in a recess (11) in the lower and eventually also the upper partof the carrier (1) and with the brush in contact with the lower side andeventually also the upper side of the tool (12) for striking off sand,gravel and other dirt when the tool is retracted into the carrier (1).5. A green restoring device according to any of the preceding claims,characterized in that the tool (2) is formed as a plate having a guidingbase (14) and two fork branches (16) projecting forwardly and arrangedconverging to each other, thereby leaving a conically outwards extendingslot (17), and which on one side thereof, preferably the upper sidecarries a spring clamp (18) having a spring (19) with an outer hook (20)which is arranged to spring-lockingly engage the outer edge of thecarrier (1) of another part of the carrier (23), so as to be kept lockedin the carrier in fully expelled position.
 6. A green restoring deviceaccording to claim 5, characterized in that the spring (19) with thelocking hook (20) is arranged for being released by means of a releasingbutton (21) engaging the spring (19) and projecting through a slot (22)of the carrier, and which by being depressed presses down and releasesthe locking hook (20) from its engagement with any part of the carrier(1).
 7. A green restoring device according to any of the precedingclaims, characterized in that the tool (2), or at least a rear partthereof is of a magnetic material, and in that the carrier, at the rearpart thereof (8) is formed with a magnet (9) which holds the tool (2) bymagnetic action in the fully retracted position of the tool (2) in thecarrier (1).
 8. A green restoring device according to any of thepreceding claims, characterized in that the carrier (1) and the lowerside thereof and at the front part thereof is formed with a recess (6)for a marker button (3), which recess preferably is circular and has, atthe bottom thereof, a projecting magnet (7) which has less diameter thanthe diameter of the recess (6).
 9. A green restoring device according toany of the preceding claims, characterized in that the carrier (1), atthe rear part thereof, has a slot (10) in which a fixing clip (4) isadapted to be mounted, which clip (4) is formed for allowing a holdingof the green restoring device in any optional place, for instance apiece of clothing.